Stuck in the Comfort Zone

Say you’re stuck in a dark room without a light source (and yes, without your mobile phone), wouldn’t it be lonely and suffocating to be contained there for years? Personally, it would drive me CRAZY.

If you’ve ever been out on nature trips, I’m sure you would have noticed the night sky. It’s pretty amazing when you look at it without the usual light pollution in the city. I remember being a beach in Cebu on the evening of December 31st. I sat on the sand, looked up, and made three wishes upon the three stars of Orion’s Belt.

The “Dark Room” is our comfort zone and the “Dark Outdoors” is going beyond it. Being stuck in the Dark Room won’t get you anywhere, but if you go outside, you’ll see the opportunities that await you.

Just a few months ago, I’ve given up a stable well-paying job for something so uncertain; I sometimes ask myself: “HAVE I GONE MAD?!” Honestly? It still scares me. The adjustment period proves the most difficult and that’s where I am right now. However, despite that fear, there are just things I do now that gives my life a sense of purpose and for the time being, it will do. By God’s grace, I’ve started workshops and bazaars which involves A LOT of socializing and meeting new people. I thank God every time because I have never, ever imagined He could bring this out of an introvert like myself. If you told me three years ago that I’d be doing workshops, I’d probably go to an uncharted island and hide.

Kidding aside, I’m not telling aspiring artists to leave their stable jobs, or dream of being a freelancer. It’s a risky thing to venture out to, truth be told. Rather, I encourage everyone to go where God leads you, be it in the “Dark Outdoors”. Being in the dark isn’t always a bad thing, it teaches us that when you can’t see around you, look up and count the starts because those are the wonderful things He has in store for your life.

Until now, I could never finish counting the stars. How about you?

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.